Documentary PhotographyPERFECT LIGHTCompelling Authentic Timeless

Siliguri & Darjeeling, India – Education

In 2007, I spent some time with my wife-to-be Laura, in Siliguri and Darjeeling, India. We were there visiting some of the projects being run by Asian Outreach, the NGO that Laura was working for. Many of the projects had to do with education. Sometimes, the focus was on a school run in a small hut for poorer children; and other times, the recipients of a education sponsorship. Education has the ability to change lives by providing new opportunities and in many third world countries, the cost to sponsor a child for 1 year of education would be a small sum for most people living in a developed country like Singapore.

The main focus for me during this particular trip was to capture portraits of the various people whose lives had been significantly impacted by the NGO. This was a bit different from my usual style of photo documentary work in that I had to direct my subjects to look at the camera. Most of the other photo documentary shoots I do consist of mainly candids and capturing people in their natural environment to tell their story.

The following is a selection of photographs that I captured during my visit there.